Local author’s theory included in Zodiac special airing Wednesday

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Mysteries at the Museum: Zodiac Special host Don Wildman, shares stories with several of Mark Hewitt’s Zodiologist friends, who observed the filming of the show which premiers Wednesday at 9 p.m. on the Travel Channel. (Contributed photo)

The Zodiac murders, the Vallejo-related serial killer case that may never die, is featured in a Travel Channel show at 9 p.m. Wednesday.

The special includes the research that led Santa Rosa author and Zodiologist Mark Hewitt to conclude that Theodore “Ted” Kaczynski, AKA the “Unabomber,” and the Zodiac are one and the same.

The Mysteries at the Museum’s new Zodiac special premiers at 9 p.m., but will air again at midnight that night and several more times in coming weeks, Hewitt said.

Working on the show was a first for Hewitt, he said.

“I really enjoyed filming with Don Wildman and the crew of about eight,” he said. “I was with them for two days in May; they shot for a total of four days.”

Wildman is among the most recognizable faces in documentary television, as host of ‘Mysteries at the Museum,’ ‘Monumental Mysteries’ and ‘Greatest Mysteries, according to the Travel Channel website, adding that in the upcoming special, Wildman “investigates the most notorious unsolved crime in American history, the Zodiac murders. Diving headlong into the case, he meets with a retired inspector who worked the crimes, learns code breaking from a Zodiac cryptographer and visits a DNA lab to understand how close authorities are to catching the killer.”

Executive Producer Steve McLaughlin said he feels like answers may finally be within reach.

“We have an experienced team of producers who did extensive research into the case,” he said. “In the show, we visit with various experts and explore both the history of the Zodiac as well as the current thinking into the case. What truly makes it an amazing case is the fact that with each new revelation comes more questions. That’s probably why the Zodiac continues to confound and entrance investigators. We also discovered a whole world of online armchair detectives who continue to work on cracking the case. Between new technological advances and a renewed push by experts and researchers like Mark, it certainly does feel like we’re closer than ever to solving the mystery of the Zodiac.”

The production team filmed with Hewitt at two locations to illustrate the first canonical Zodiac slaying — that of David Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen of Vallejo, on Dec. 20, 1968, he said.

“First we filmed at Lake Herman, then we moved down the road to the murder scene,” he said. “After midnight, we traveled to the Blue Rock Springs Park, where Darlene Ferrin and Michael Mageau were attacked, July 4, 1969.”

Two days later, the crew filmed at Lake Berryessa, where Bryan Hartnell and Cecelia Shepherd were stabbed Sept. 27, 1969, he said.

“I have never done anything like it, so it was a whole new experience for me,” Hewitt said. “They asked about details of each of the attacks. They had done their research and knew what to ask. At the end of the second day, they invited me to share my theories of the case. I presented my hypothesis only because they signed (a document) and promised not to share it until the release of my book on Sept. 27.”

Hewitt said he was also invited to share and discuss some of his Zodiac-related artwork.

“They represent a new genre of art, serial killer hunter art,” he said. “It consists of Zodiac letters and other parts of the case, with highlighting to explain the killer’s meaning behind the words.”

One piece of what Zodiologist Mark Hewitt calls Zodiac art, shows where the author of a trilogy on the Zodiac killings believes clues to the killer’s identity can be found in his communications with authorities and others at the time.More of what Zodiologist/author Mark Hewitt says are clues hidden in the Zodiac killer’s own letters.An example of what zodiologist Mark Hewitt calls Zodiac art, which he says shows clues to who the killer was/is in his own cryptic way.

Hewitt said he was especially impressed with the show’s host.

“Don Wildman is very professional and was very personable at the same time,” he said. “When done in California, he flew to Germany to do a story on the Hindenburg disaster.”

A TV viewing party and book signing is planned for 9 p.m. Wednesday, at the Jack London Saloon in Glen Ellen, at 13740 Arnold Drive, Hewitt said.

With the Times-Herald since 1999, Rachel Raskin-Zrihen has been a reporter, writer and columnist for several print and online publications for nearly 30 years. She is the married mother of two grown sons and lives locally.